Home grown grass for budgies

[mona]

The pigeons are going to be angry at me! 😅 Mold growth had been happening indoors, so I moved these outdoors inside an old partially broken travel cage.. The rainy clouds have been moving away since a few days! And this is what I meant by a jungle! 😅

I'm a sweet tooth.. So, I've got a ton of sweet boxes like these! One of them contains the leftover from their sprout seed mix.
I moved it to my other balcony, where generally outdoor birds don't visit us!

[tweetiepiesmom]

Yes, the pigeons are going to mad and frustrated trying to get it! I have found that trying to grow seeds indoors sometimes results in mold, probably because I over water. Outside the excess water drains off better.

[Hezz]

Plus you have more air movement outside.

[mona]

This seems to be a success.

Wheatgrass:


Moong bean leaf:

[tweetiepiesmom]

Very definitely a success! Mine dig into the wheat grass just like yours.

[Hezz]

They have definitely come a long way, showing how much they trust you now, and beautiful fresh greens there - almost look good enough to eat!

[willowsmum]

Great success mona and they are sharing so nicely!

[mona]

I'm really so grateful for all the tips & info I got from here.. I have learnt a lot more in such a short span of time.. all thanks to this forum 😍

tweetiepiesmom I wasn't expecting them to go for it so soon. I thought it would take multiple days and attempts. But I guess they are good with trying anything green in color!

Hezz Yeah, it seems so! Few days back Breezie came so close to me when I was giving him a spray bath! I totally love it. Grass has grown well, there's a constant mold growth almost everyday, due to rains (can't decide which weather it is!). I used the same vinegar solution spray to get rid of mold growth. Almost daily I have to spray. It seems to be a magic solution 🥰

willowsmum Sometimes they share it well. Breezie is often afraid of Cookie..I have to call him to eat it together. But, most of the times, they do share now. Last year, it was a different story altogether. I had to place two of everything to avoid them fighting over things. Eventually, when they had two of everything, they started sharing.. lol. But, you can't say anything.. they might change tomorrow again! So unpredictable!

[mona]

Opened up a new pack of their seed mix two days back, so just put them for sprout test.


Planted them in soil this time  just in case if that helps with the reduction of mold growth. Coconut coir/coco peat retains moisture  if I understand it correctly.. The other set of wheatgrass has grown well. I am thinking about moving them out of cage. Didn't see pigeons in my other balcony.. I'm waiting when it'll grow seed heads 😍 Maybe then, I'll plant a new set then.

They love wheatgrass.. How much do they eat, bdw? There are tiny holes in the grass that I give them. They don't eat it like coriander or spinach, which they finish in one go..but that would be due to the hardness factor.

They have tried out rye and moong plant too. Waiting for moong plant to grow seed heads too, sure they would love it. But, that growth is so slow and I'm so impatient 😅

[tweetiepiesmom]

I have grass growing in pots. Some of it is getting really long. My guys also chew it and eat little pieces unlike the basil or other leaves which they'll eat. This time of year with the shorter days I'm not sure if I'll get seed heads. I'll be delighted If I do. I'm wondering if longer daylight might trigger the plant to make the seed heads.

[tweetiepiesmom]

I have the answer to my question! I thought that maybe the length of daylight might be needed to trigger the grass to produce seed heads. I'm delighted to report that even with shorter days, my grass has started to produce seed heads! My guys are in for a treat soon. Winters here tend to be mild especially along the coast where I live. Nights usually don't go much below 50F (10C) and days are usually mid 60F to low 70F (15.5C to 21C).

Here's the evidence:

[mona]

How much time did it take to get the seed heads tweetiepiesmom ?

I had also planted a couple other greens, including moong, coriander, yellow mustard, brown chickpea, rye, fenugreek, mixed millets foxtail millet.. just experimenting.. Mine like any of these plant leaf.. Looking forward to add more..

[tweetiepiesmom]

mona I didn't write down when I planted that grass. I got it as a little pot already growing so it wasn't started as seeds. I'm guessing it was probably 6-8 weeks. I started some more 2 weeks ago from seeds. My idea is to rotate the crop so it won't be too long in between getting seed heads. I'm experimenting also with some oat grass that had been growing for two months and it looks like it may be producing seed heads soon.

[mona]

I had to replant all old wheatgrass and other grasses in larger containers.

Had a few one year old dusty foxtail millet seeds that came along with the old cage. I never found it fit to feed to birdies or garden birds.

Just threw a bunch of them to check if I can grow some grass. Seems to have worked. Glad I didn't throw it away.
With my struggle of finding millet sprays, I can give this a try with proper container and care.



It looks gorgeous!! 😍 so tempted to put the entire box in budgie cage, but i think it's wise not to!

[blue48]

This is something I definitely have to try as soon as the shops open.